Introduction
Racial and ethnic diversity among health care professionals is vital to maintaining high quality health care that is accessible, equitable, and culturally competent.1,2,3 The provision of culturally competent health care requires not only a health care workforce that is prepared to interact with the variety of cultures represented in North Carolina’s population, but also requires a workforce that represents the population and communities they serve.4,5,6,7,8
Methods
To assess North Carolina’s capacity to deliver health care through a racially and ethnically diverse health care workforce, descriptive analyses were conducted using 1994-2009 North Carolina licensure data housed
within the North Carolina Health Professions
Data System (NC HPDS). The data used in this
analysis, including race/ethnicity, were self-reported at time of initial licensure or subsequent renewal by
health professionals licensed to practice in North Carolina as of October 31 of each year. Data include active, instate, non-federal, non-resident-in-training physicians and active, in-state practitioners in the other professions. Primary care includes general practice, family practice, general internal medicine, pediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology.
Findings
The racial/ethnic diversity of North Carolina’s health care professionals falls short of matching state population diversity (Figure 1).
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One in three (33%) North Carolina residents is nonwhite compared to 17% of health professionals.
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There is an overall lack of diversity among North Carolina’s health professionals, and while some professions have lagged behind, licensed practical nurses (LPN) and primary care physicians (PCP) can be considered “best practice” professions.
Note: Data include active, instate, nonfederal health care professionals licensed as of October 31, 2009. “Nonwhite” refers to those who self-identify racially as African American/black, Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native, and ethnically as nonwhite Hispanic/Latino. Source: North Carolina Health Professions Data System, with data derived from the North Carolina Boards of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Dentistry, Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Respiratory Therapy, 2010; US Census Bureau, American Factfinder, http://factfinder.census.gov, accessed August 24, 2011. Produced by: North Carolina Health Professions Data System, Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
The Diversity of
North Carolina’s Health Care Workforce
Victoria McGee and Erin Fraher
August 2012
North Carolina Health Professions Data System
The Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Campus Box 7590 • 725 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. • Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7590
http://www.shepscenter.unc.edu/hp • nchp@unc.edu • (919) 966-7112
North Carolina Health Professions Data System, Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
67%69%73%83%84%84%88%88%89%94%0%NC PopulationLicensed Practical NursesPrimary Care PhysiciansRespiratory TherapistsRegistered NursesDentistsPharmacistsSurgeonsNurse PractitionersNurse Practitioners: 3,190Total NC Population: 9,045,705Dental HygienistsTotal Number of ProvidersFigure 1. Diversity of North Carolina’s Population Compared toDiversity of Selected Health Professions, 2009Licensed Practical Nurses: 17,925 Primary Care Physicians: 8,423Respiratory Therapists: 3,828Registered Nurses: 90,487Dentists: 4,091Pharmacists: 8,676Surgeons: 1,953Dental Hygienists: 5,13010%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%Other/MultiracialHispanic/LatinoAfrican American/BlackAsian/Pacific IslanderAmerican Indian/Alaska NativeWhite% nonwhite33%31%27%17%16%16%12%12%11%6%